When the Taliban took over the control of Kabul in August this year, many feared the worst for the women in Afghanistan. As the new regime stamped their authority in the war-torn country women vanished instantly from the country’s social, political and cultural spaces.
These apart, in recent days, the Taliban mandated the segregation of genders in classrooms. They further asked female students, lecturers and employees to wear hijabs.
However, of late many Afghan women worldwide have protested against the Taliban’s archaic rulings by posting photos of themselves wearing colourful traditional dresses on social media, reported CNN.
Bahar Jalali, a former faculty member of the American University of Afghanistan, initiated the campaign, according to other women who shared photos on Twitter.
“No woman has ever dressed like this in the history of Afghanistan. This is utterly foreign and alien to Afghan culture. I posted my pic in the traditional Afghan dress to inform, educate, and dispel the misinformation that is being propagated by Taliban,” Jalali tweeted.
Soon, many stepped up to carry forward the campaign on social media.
Tweeting a picture of herself in traditional Afghan dress, Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi, head of the Afghan service at DW News, said: “This is Afghan culture and this is how Afghan women dress.”
Sana Safi, a leading BBC journalist, also posted her picture with a comment: “So how do Afghan women dress then? They ask. This is how. If I was in Afghanistan then I would have the scarf on my head. This is as “conservative” and “traditional” as I/you can get.”
Peymana Assad, a local politician in the UK who hails from Afghanistan, said: “Our cultural attire is not the dementor outfits the Taliban have women wearing.”
Some celebrities have also backed the protest of Afghan women against the Taliban. For example, posting a picture of himself wearing a t-shirt that reads “I stand with Afghan Women”, Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman said, I stand with #AfghanWomen who are facing violence and uncertainty. Who’s with me?”
